The Yahoo Outbound Telemarketing Buyer’s Guide isn’t bad. It’s just that it’s stuffed so full of fluff and SEO-oriented sentences and formatting, that it can be a little frustrating to get through. You can check it here.

Anyway, to spare you the pain, I went ahead and created the Cliff Notes version for you:

Types of Telemarketing Services:

Direct sales

Lead generation

Appointment scheduling

Verifying information/cleaning lists

Research and surveys

Balance cost versus expertise level of the service provider.

Reasons to Outsource:

Accommodate rapid growth

Leverage expertise of service provider

Test new markets quickly

Specialty services such as split shifts, multiple languages, etc.

Potential cost savings

Preparation

Decide on goals and pick success metrics in advance

Forecast your expected call volume

Find an agency with relevant experience

If possible, sync up CRM systems

Avoid companies where the average tenure of an agent is less than 1 year… look for agencies where 35% or more of the agents have been with the firm for 3 years or more.

Determine in advance the reporting you will need (type and format) and verify that the agency can accommodate you.

Decide whether you want to be able to monitor the agents live.

Decide whether data security is important to you and what safeguards you require.

Establish call protols in advance:

time of day to call

number tries before leaving a message

how to follow up

Participate in training

Check References

Did you accomplish your overall goals when working with this company?

Were you able to get all the metrics you needed around activity and results?

What were the agents’ biggest strengths and weaknesses?

To Offshore Or Not To Offshore

Pro: cheaper… up to 75% lower

Con: can impact corporate image

Con: communication issues

Con: travel for site visits

Choose locations where accents are not too strong and English is commonly spoken…

Apply the same selection criteria as you would for U.S.-based agencies.

Site Visits

Listen to calls

Talk to the agents

Outsourcing Costs & Requirements

Many firms have minimu call volumes ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 person hours or more

Costs can range from $10 an hour for an offshore service to as high as $60 an hour for a specialized domestic call center

Setup fees can be in the thousands of dollars

Some agencies charge separately for administration

Final Tips

Agencies willing to work on a commission, at least partially, often deliver better results

2 Responses

Great read. I’m considering going back to an onshore call center after losing a client as a result of hiring a Philipino call center a week ago.

If you’re using a call center for the purpose of lead generation/prospecting, make sure to invest in a strong lead list with direct contact names, titles and extensions.

I stopped using InfoUSA’s data and I switched to The Lead Boutique. My conversions increased by 200%. Make sure to look into buying a premium telemarketing lead list from a firm like The Lead Boutique.